Sherpao speaks: ‘Efforts under way to curtail unemployment’

PESHAWAR:

At a briefing about the work done by the K-P Department of Industries, Minister for Irrigation Sikandar Hayat Sherpao said industries enjoy the status of being the economy’s backbone. According to a handout, he added, the provincial government is taking steps to promote the sector to curtail unemployment. 

“Besides having tourist spots, our province is replete with natural resources like water, gas, minerals and oil,” he said at the briefing on Friday. “We are trying our utmost to attract local and foreign investment to accrue maximum benefits of these resources.”

He added natural calamities, like floods, and militancy have marred the industrial sector as most investors have shifted their business from K-P to Punjab. “Now we are trying to bring them back here by providing them a peaceful and conducive atmosphere,” said Sikandar.

K-P lacked a skilled and technical workforce due to which mostly the outsiders were working in the industries functioning in the province, he said.

“The provincial government is concentrating on realigning technical education along modern lines which will help in produce a skilled workforce and ultimately lead to generating maximum employment opportunities.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 5^th,  2015.